When is Car Free Day? Date and significance of the holiday | PolishTrains

At a glance

• Car Free Day falls on 22 September every year as the final day of European Mobility Week
• The event is coordinated by the European Commission and takes place in cities across Europe
• The Car Free Day initiative began in the 1970s and was first celebrated on a larger scale in 1995
• PKP Intercity and POLREGIO typically offer promotional bicycle transport fares on 22 September
• In previous years a bicycle ticket for PLN 1 was available on designated trains on Car Free Day
• Some cities offer free public transport on the day, though conditions vary by municipality

First of all, a brief history of World Car Free Day

The World Car-Free Day initiative began back in the last century. The first plans to organise an event to promote environmentally friendly modes of transport took place as early as the 1970s. However, the first Car Free Day did not take place until the 1990s, pioneered by the Icelanders, the British and the French in selected cities. In contrast, it wasn't until 1995 that the day began to be celebrated on a larger scale, following the creation of the World Car Free Day Consortium.

When is Car Free Day?

The next Car Free Day celebrations fall on 22 September 2025, which is just after the weekend, when many people get to work or school by public transport or train. It is therefore a great opportunity to take advantage of special offers and promotions.

At the moment, the full offer for Car Free Day 2025 is not known, but looking at previous years, we can expect considerable attractions. Usually you can count on:

• The possibility of free travel on public transport, depending on the city for drivers on presentation of their registration card or for all residents.
• Opportunitiesto travel by train at lower fares or with additional amenities, e.g. transporting a bicycle for one zloty.
• Attractive offers for city bikes or scooters.
• Events and exhibitions showcasing public transport, public transport or rail.
• Events for children - including competitions, quizzes and workshops organised by the municipal authorities.

Car Free Day attractions are largely aimed at promoting public transport, but they vary from city to city; we can expect something different in Kraków and in the capital. It is also worth knowing that free public transport in some regions may be available only to car owners or residents of a particular locality, so as a tourist you will not always be able to take advantage of them.

In previous years, most provinces had their own individual offers for Car Free Day, but these are very similar from year to year.

Standard offers for European Car Free Day in selected Polish cities:

• Warsaw - ticket-free travel on buses, trams, underground and Rapid Urban Rail trains. In order not to confuse anyone, the metro gates are open and the ticket punchers are switched off.
• Wrocław - free public and suburban transport (buses, trams) and free one hour for city bikes (must have a bike app).
• Cracow - free public transport on 22 September and many events for the European Mobility Week from 16 to 22 September (conferences, workshops and attractions for children related to transport, public transport and ecology).
• Poznań - free travel on ZTM lines for car owners upon presentation of the vehicle registration card.
• Gdańsk - free city transport and MEVO bicycles for city residents. To take advantage of the offer, you need to have an active Gdańsk Residents' Card.

Rail carriers are also joining the action for Car Free Day so that their means of transport can also support this environmentally friendly initiative. POLREGIO and PKP Intercity have special promotions every year.

PKP Intercity - on last year's Car Free Day offered to carry a bicycle for one zloty - an offer for designated TLK, IC, EIC and EIP trains. In order to take advantage of this, a free ticket must be booked for the carriage of a bicycle. In addition, there are a limited number of spaces available on trains to carry a bike, so be sure to purchase a ticket to carry your bike in the first half of September if this offer also comes up this year. There is an additional promotion for attractively priced tickets for travel on Pendolino trains (when seats in Class 2 are purchased). The promotion in 2024 was available mainly on routes to and from Warsaw.

POLREGIO - as part of World Car Free Day, the carrier is offering special offers depending on the province. In some, the promotions are valid only on 22 September, in others for the whole week from 16 to 22 September. Examples of offers for selected provinces:

• Łódzkie voivodeship - promotion only on 22 September - upon presentation of the registration card, free travel within the city and the entire region of Łódź. In addition to the owner of the vehicle, as many people can travel with the vehicle for free as indicated on the registration card (i.e. the possible number of passengers in the vehicle);
• Lubuskie Voivodeship - two promotions: the first one for the carriage of a bicycle for PLN from 16 to 22 September, and the second one for a train ride for PLN only on 22 September upon presentation of the registration card;
• Pomeranian vo ivodeship - free train travel throughout the region for car owners, promotion upon presentation of a registration card on 20-22 September;
• Dolnośląskie voivodeship - free travel within the Wrocław Municipality, the offer is valid only on 22 September and there is no need to show ID, so any passenger can take advantage of it;
• Kujawsko-Pomorskie voivodeship - free travel on 22 September for car owners, it is compulsory to have the vehicle registration document and identity document with you;
• Podkarpackie Vo ivodeship - free travel within Podkarpacie for every passenger, only on 22 September, no need to show any additional documents.

As you can see, the rail carriers also have a lot to offer. With POLREGIO, you can get on a train for as little as a symbolic zloty, so you can get to work or on a day trip without major costs. On the other hand, the offer of PKP Intercity gives you a great opportunity to travel by bike to slightly further regions. You can go e.g. to Wrocław, to the seaside or to the mountains to visit local bicycle routes.

World Car Free Day is an environmentally friendly holiday to draw attention to the negative effects of car use on health, the environment and the climate. At the same time, the initiative aims to showcase alternative modes of transport that are less harmful to us and our planet.

Benefits of train travel - 3 interesting facts about rail transport

Travelling by train is one of the best options, both on Car Free Day and on a daily basis. The following facts in particular speak in favour of using rail transport:

1. Rail transport emits 3 times less carbon dioxide than road transport.
2. Trains are a much more economical means of transport than aircraft. In this case, train sets emit 8 times less environmentally harmful substances. As PKP Intercity is launching more and more international connections, it is worth considering rail travel when planning your trips.
3. Most PKP Intercity vehicles no longer emit fumes! Nearly 85% of trains are all-electric trainsets and the locomotives, which are still not electrified, meet environmental standards, making them more climate-friendly.

Booking connections on Car Free Day - where to buy a ticket?

Would you like to bet on greener modes of transport and buy a promotional ticket for EIP (Pendolino) journeys or book a connection with free bike transport? Be sure to do it in advance! You can make your purchase conveniently and quickly online, for example using the PolishTrains website. This is a platform with an intuitive search engine for train connections, which is constantly being improved and updated to enable even faster booking. By choosing to book your ticket through PolishTrains, you are assured that the offer includes all the Car Free Day promotions you can take advantage of.